Wealthsimple Trade Review 2025

What is Wealthsimple Self-Directed Investing (Formerly Wealthsimple Trade)?

Wealthsimple self-directed investing is an online brokerage that lets you buy individual stocks and other assets. It’s part of the Wealthsimple ecosystem – a financial company (primarily owned by the massive Quebec-based conglomerate Power Corp) that has over 3 million customers and oversees $70+ billion in assets. Wealthsimple itself kicked off in 2014, while the self-directed platform officially made its debut in 2019.

Unlike Wealthsimple Managed Investing (formerly called Wealthsimple Invest) and other Canadian robo advisors, Wealthsimple Trade is fully hands-on. That means you’re the one doing the research, choosing which stocks or ETFs to buy, and deciding when to sell. Sure, that can mean that you save a bit on fees by doing your own homework – but it also ramps up the risk factor.

If you’re wondering how robo-advisors differ from self-directed brokerages, you might want to check out our Wealthsimple vs Qtrade article, as well as our Wealthsimple vs Questrade guide.

In this Wealthsimple Trade review, we’ll walk you through all the ins and outs of the platform, lay out what’s great and what’s lacking, and then compare it to Qtrade – my personal favorite among Canada’s best online brokers. Finally, we’ll let you know who this platform makes sense for, and whether it’s worth your time and your money. (*Spoiler: probably not – unless dabbling in crypto.)

Is Wealthsimple Trade Safe?

Wealthsimple is, indeed, legit. Wealthsimple Trade is regulated by IIROC (Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada) and has industry backing to the tune of $380 million from some of the world’s biggest banks. Their majority owner is Power Corporation of Canada, which has been around for more than 100 years.

Not only is Wealthsimple legit, it’s safe. Their custodial broker, Canadian ShareOwner (the company that holds your funds), is Canadian Investor Protection Fund (CIPF) protected up to $1 million per account. They use 2-factor authentication for their apps and browser interface and feature bank-level security, including a 128-bit SSL certificate and the backup programs and firewalls that are standard in the financial industry.

This may be obvious to you, but to be clear for our newer readers out there, none of this protects you from the risk of investing. Unfortunately, no one can ever guarantee that your ETF or stock won’t drop in value. To learn more about index investing and ETFs, check out our comprehensive article on Index Investing in Canada.

Wealthsimple Trade Review: Trading Fees & Commissions

Wealthsimple Trade was the first online brokerage in Canada to charge no commissions at all. It has since been joined by National Bank Discount Brokerage and Questrade. Most other online brokerages charge between $4.95 and $9.95 per trade.

Wealthsimple Trade gives you free access to thousands of stocks and ETFs on North America’s largest stock exchanges, as well as 20+ kinds of cryptocurrency if you add on Wealthsimple Crypto.

Now, any honest Wealthsimple Trade review has to note near the top that even though you are not paying upfront for your trade, you are paying through the selling of your market trade information to meta-buyers. These buyers pay Wealthsimple for your trading information so that they can then front-run trades using algorithms.

Basically, the phrase: If you aren’t paying for the product, you ARE the product – has never been more true.

Wealthsimple also makes substantial money on the currency conversion fees from when you purchase US stocks, as well as the cash balances sitting in your account. 

You have no required minimum balance to begin investing, and you can purchase fractional shares as low as $1. This is helpful if you’re starting out and don’t have a lot to invest. 

Note: not all shares are available for fractional share purchase.

Account And Transaction Fees

Wealthsimple Trade really means it when they say no fees for trading. 

They do charge a 0%-1.5% conversion fee when making US trades without a USD account, so keep that in mind if you’re interested in cross-border investment. The conversion fee amount is dependent on the size of the transaction, with transactions over $100,000 having a currency conversion fee of 0%. If you plan to try strategies like Norbert’s Gambit, this is not the platform for you. 

They also charge a hefty 0.50-2% fee for cryptocurrency transactions. 

Currently, Wealthsimple has three tiers, based on client assets, which inform the fees they pay for certain transactions. For example, with the aforementioned cryptocurrency transaction fees, it is Core Clients who would be charged 2%, Premium Clients 1%, and Generation Clients just 0.50%.

Wealthsimple has been criticized in the past by the Globe and Mail for shifting customers away from their previous laser focus on low-fee investing to its much more profitable cryptocurrency trading arm, as well as its trading platform.

Available Investments With Wealthsimple Trade

Wealthsimple Trade gives you access to thousands of US and Canadian stocks and ETFs that are listed on the following exchanges:

• Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX)
• TSX Venture Exchange (TSXV)
• New York Stock Exchange (NYSE)
• NASDAQ
• NEO
• Canadian Securities Exchange (CSE)
• BATS Exchange

Wealthsimple now offers Options and OTC securities on the self-directed platform, but Bond portfolios are available on the managed platform. This means that the following assets are not available for trading on this self-directed investing platform:

• Mutual Funds
• Preferred Shares
• Options
• Securities that trade over the counter (OTC)
• Forwards & Futures
• Rights and Warrants
• Bonds
• Investment Savings Accounts & Money Markets
• Non-North American ETFs and stocks

Wealthsimple Trade Review: Account Options

For a long time, Wealthsimple self directed investing only had basic non-registered accounts, RRSPs, and TFSAs. However, they have recently fleshed out a fuller range of options including:

• Personal / business
• TFSA
• RRSP
• RESP
• LIRA
• FHSA
• RRIF
• LIF
• USD accounts
• Joint, corporate, and trust options
• Margin accounts
• Non-registered accounts

Overall, while they don’t have quite as many options as some other brokerages, they can cover the vast majority of what the average Canadian investor would need.

Wealthsimple Trade Plans and Benefits

Once upon a time, you could register and pay for a service called “Wealthsimple Trade Premium”. This has changed slightly in that you now earn your way to receive benefits, based on the value of your assets. Once you have over $100,000 in assets, you become a Premium Client and unlock benefits.

At over $500,000, you become a Generation Client and your rewards increase further. For those with under $100,000 in assets, they are a Core Client and have the highest fees and the least benefits.

For further information on the perks available with each level of membership, check out the comprehensive table from Wealthsimple.

On the one hand, we’re happy they offer these options for a reasonable price… but on the other hand, if you’re serious about trading, there are other platforms that give you much more data and analytics, plus more asset and account options, as part of their basic package. Time and time again, we hear from experienced traders that the Wealthsimple platform is lacking in the data and analytics they are seeking.

You can learn more about what other trading apps have to offer in our collection of The Best Stock Trading Apps in Canada. 

How To Sign Up For Wealthsimple Trade

To open a Wealthsimple account, you must be a Canadian resident at the legal age of majority for your province (18 or 19, depending on where you live).

Signing up is easy. First, download the app or go to their website. Then enter your personal information and banking info. Wealthsimple will ask for your:

• Full Name
• Email
• Social Insurance Number (SIN)
• Date of Birth
• Address
• Phone Number
• Employment information

Once you’ve linked a bank account, you can move money into your account (you should be able to deposit up to $1500 instantly, but larger transactions can take up to 5 days) and then begin investing.

If you have a Wealthsimple Invest account you can use your existing credentials to open an account, but your accounts will be separate. You can have separate TFSAs, RRSPs, personal accounts, and more with both Wealthsimple Trade and Wealthsimple Invest.

Wealthsimple Trade Welcome Bonus

Wealthsimple’s self-directed investing’s latest welcome bonus is $50, plus some free trades.

In addition, if you have an account with another brokerage, and transfer your account to Wealthsimple, they will automatically reimburse the fees. 

Frankly, that pales in comparison to the deal that our top-rated online discount brokerage, Qtrade has going. Check out my Qtrade promo code article for more details. But long story short, you can get up to $150 cash back, depending on the size of the transfer (plus free trades, plus free account transfer).

From Wealthsimple, 2025 started off with an attractive promotional offering: 2% match on RRSP transfers, and 1% match on other eligible account types, along with free ski lift tickets. While this promotion is no longer active, Wealthsimple wasn’t the only online brokerage with an enticing deal for the transfer or opening of an account. It’s just one more thing to consider if you are looking at switching or opening an account with a new brokerage, because who doesn’t like free cash?

Features, Tools, And Ease of Use

Wealthsimple’s trading platform is not our favourite (to say the least).

It’s streamlined to the point of oversimplification. Also, the browser version is relatively new and prone to being buggy.

The Wealthsimple site has some video resources like an investing master class that “will turn you into a financial genius in less than 45 minutes.” [Spoiler alert: it doesn’t]. They have added many articles to the Educational page of their website, and while it’s a start, it’s nothing groundbreaking.

Wealthsimple Trade Mobile App

Wealthsimple Trade was Canada’s first free trading app. Now, they’ve conglomerated all their products into one app, simply called “Wealthsimple”. So, whether you are using self-directed investing as outlined in this article, or managed/robo-investing, or everyday banking actions, it is all done within the one app.

Wealthsimple prides itself on a clean design and intuitive user interface… which is why we were surprised when we tried it and found it clunky and confusing. However, as per online reviews, many clients love the simplicity of it. Some more advanced traders find it to be limited in functionality. 

While it does provide basic performance information for assets, the Wealthsimple interface doesn’t provide you with the analysis tools or in-depth information that many investors look for. It’s definitely tailored for the new or casual investor.

They have certainly made improvements to the app since our last review, however. You can now buy and sell ETFs through the app and get real-time quotes for all securities.

Another downside for Wealthsimple Invest customers who want to try their hand at active investing: your Wealthsimple Invest (robo advisor) and Wealthsimple Trade accounts aren’t linked. You can transfer funds between them, but only as cash, and it can take up to 5-7 business days while you wait for them to sell your holdings.

While we find the overall functionality of the Wealthsimple app to be limited when it comes to self-managed investing, especially when compared to leading mobile apps, most users are happy with the app. It is rated 4.3 stars by Android users and 4.6 stars by Apple users.

Keep in mind, however, these ratings are dictated by those using different functions of the app. It is hard to gather data specific to the self-directed investing actions of the app!

Wealthsimple Trade Review: Customer Service

Wealthsimple Trade is designed for investors who want to do it themselves – and they took that to heart with their customer service! However, improvements have been made over the years. Also, the more money you have with Wealthsimple (ie, for Generation Clients), the better service you’ll receive, such as a direct line to call when you need help.

On the “Contact Us” page of their website, they list their 24/7 chat (AI virtual assistant), 24/7 phone line, and refer people to their Help Centre “for quick answers to common questions”. That all sounds pretty good, but it doesn’t quite align with what we hear from clients.

The MDJ editorial team was unanimous in saying that we had received more complaints about the Wealthsimple Trade platform in 2025 than any other broker-related issue from any of the platform options. Currently, it has a 1.5 star customer service rating on TrustPilot Canada.

Wealthsimple Trade or Wealthsimple Invest?

Wealthsimple offers two ways to invest. In this section of our Wealthsimple Trade Review, we’ll look at the pros and cons of each.

Wealthsimple Trade

Through Wealthsimple Trade, ie, Wealthsimple Self-Directed Investing, investors will take on a more hands-on approach. They will trade their own stocks and ETFs, and will need to make sure to rebalance them regularly. 

When you use Wealthsimple Trade, you will have access to:

• Commission-free trading 
• North American Stock Exchanges (but will need to pay a 0%-1.5% currency exchange fee in order to trade US stocks without one of their USD accounts)
• Crypto trading
• Canadian savings accounts such as TFSA, RRSP, RESP, FHSA, and many more.
• 3 levels of accounts with varying services and fees: Core, Premium and Generation

What you will not be able to do with a Wealthsimple Trade account is purchase Mutual Funds, or jump onto an IPO purchase.

While Wealthsimple Trade began as an app only platform, it is now accessible from your PC, Mac or laptop. The interface is similar to the app in terms of simplicity and ease of use.

Wealthsimple

Wealthsimple, also called Wealthsimple Invest, is a robo advisor service that offers a diverse range of portfolio choices for clients to choose from, making it easy to start investing.

When you use Wealthsimple Invest you will have access to:

• In addition to more traditional ETFs, you’ll be able to choose from a selection of 3 standard portfolios, plus socially responsible investing (SRI) portfolios and halal portfolio options.
• Rebalancing will be done automatically. Purchasing and selling of stocks and bonds needed for a well–balanced portfolio will be made without you needing to worry about it.
• 3 levels of accounts with varying services and fees: Core, Premium and Generation

While Wealthsimple does offer a range of unique offerings, it comes at a cost with a management fee of 0.4% – 0.5% depending on account balance. This is higher than most other Canadian robo advisor services. In addition, the platform doesn’t offer some of the tools and resources many other platforms do.

Wealthsimple Trade vs Qtrade

Our Wealthsimple Trade review wouldn’t be complete without putting it head-to-head with Qtrade, our most recommended discount broker. You can find the basic details and some general comments here, but be sure to check out our Qtrade vs Wealthsimple article as well.

Canadian ETFs	Free to buy and sell	Free to buy and sell
User Experience	Excellent - consistently ranked #1 in Canada. Built for Canadian users exclusively.	Average. Customer service can be difficult to reach, and there have been complaints about order processing times.
Account Options	Personal / business, RRSP, RESP, TFSA, LIRA, RRIF, LIF, LIRA, FHSA, USD accounts. Joint, corporate, and trust options. Cash accounts, margin accounts, and non-registered accounts.	Personal / business, TFSA, RRSP, RESP, LIRA, FHSA, RRIF, LIF, USD accounts. Joint, corporate, and trust options. Cash accounts, margin accounts, and non-registered accounts.
Safety	CIPF Member, IIROC regulated	CIPF Member, IIROC regulated
Mutual Fund Purchases	Available, Free of charge	Not Available
Investment options	Stocks, ETFs, mutual funds, bonds, new issues (IPOs and secondary/treasury offerings), GICs, options.	Stocks, ETFs, crypto, and options.
Promotion	5% Cash Back + Unlimited Free Trades	$50 Cash Bonus
Sign Up	Visit Qtrade	Visit Wealthsimple Trade

We have a full Qtrade review in addition to our comparison article, so you can dig deeper if you want all the details…but here’s the gist: If you want to do more than scratch the surface of DIY investing, Qtrade is the clear choice. The only advantage we see in Wealthsimple Trade is that it’s free…and that’s just not good enough.

Wealthsimple Trade Review FAQ

Should You Use Wealthsimple Trade?

Cost is often the first consideration when choosing a brokerage—and for good reason. Low or zero-commission trading can be appealing, but it’s important to ask: What are the hidden costs?

With Wealthsimple Trade, the price you pay may not be financial, but rather your personal data. That’s a trade-off some investors may find uncomfortable. Additionally, the platform’s minimalist design, limited features, and basic customer support can leave you without help when you need it most.

If you’re seeking a higher standard of service, it may be worth paying a bit more. For investors who want more than what Wealthsimple Trade/Wealthsimple Self-Directed Investing offers, take a look at our Best Online Brokers in Canada. To understand why Qtrade ranks at the top, read our full Qtrade review.